sharing synod for jpii cymc1
TRANSCRIPT
The Banana leaf or “Dahon ng Saging”
What is New in the Synod on NE? What does it have for us Filipino Catholics?
to proclaim the Good News with courage and sense of
urgency in the spirit of Jesus and the apostles.
St. Paul: “Woe to me if I do not preach
the Gospel.” “Preach the Gospel in season
and out of season.”.
The Synod, picking up JP II’s understanding of NE, declared in its message: … “to live our communitarian experience of faith in a renewed way and to proclaim it through an evangelization that is “new in its ardor, in its methods, in its expressions”…
For Benedict XVI
an evangelization that is directed
“principally at those who,
though baptized, have drifted away
from the Church and live without reference
to the Christian life...
•Mga di pa sumasampalataya kay Kristo (mission work)
•Mga binyagan at patuloy na sumasampalataya kay Kristo (pastoral ministry)
•Mga binyagan ngunit tulog o patay ang pananampalataya kay Kristo kaya malayo sa Simbahan (re-evangelization)
FOR ALL
The Acts and Decrees
of PCP II and implement
them faithfully and
if there need be,
update them, with the
spirit of apostolic courage
and sense of urgency that
the Synod today proposes
to the universal Church.
Synod on NE and PCP II
The Synod recognized the
importance of the Second
Vatican Council and its
documents “as a vital
instrument for transmitting
the faith in the context of
the New Evangelization
….” (and) “at the same
time they consider that the
documents … should be
properly read and
interpreted.”
In the same way, we in the
Philippines should still
maintain that PCP II is the
blueprint of our
evangelization and New
Evangelization and hence
all the more seriously we
commit to study its
teachings, re-own its
vision, adopt it to today’s
context and truly live its
values and spirit.
“the need for a New Evangelization is not peculiar
to the Church in the Philippines…
At the same time this Plenary Council is in line with
Vatican II (with its) leitmotif of aggiornamento...
The spirit of PCP II is the spirit of the New Evangelization…”
“this unified document of our Council could well become the Magna Carta
guiding the evangelizing mission of the Church in the Philippines into the
third millennium.”
1st Foundation: Personal Encounter with Jesus Christ in the Church as the conditio sine qua non for the NE. The foundation of all evangelization.
The Personal Encounter with Jesus Christ in the Church
The work of the New
Evangelization consists in
presenting once more the
beauty and perennial newness
of the encounter with Christ
to the often distracted and
confused heart and mind of the
men and women of our time,
above all to ourselves.
Di kailangan mag-imbento ng bagong paraan dahil ang
mabuting Balita ay di isang produktong sa pamilihan ng mga relihiyon na ipinagbibili ayon sa
usong paraan. Ang kailangan natin gawin ay tuklasin ang
paraan ni Hesus nang tagpuin Niya at tawagin ang iba’t ibang
mga tao (ang mga apostol, sina Zacheo, ang magkapatid na
sina Marta, ang Samaritana, at iayon ito sa ating panahon.
“Our witness,
however, would
be hopelessly
inadequate if we
ourselves had
not first
contemplated
his face.”
(John Paul II, Novo
Millennio Ineunte)
Proposition 9:
“New Evangelization and Initial Proclamation” affirms the importance of the personal encounter
with Christ and discusses it in the context of
“the ‘first proclamation’ where the kerygma,
the message of salvation of the paschal mystery
of Jesus Christ, is proclaimed with great spiritual
power ...”
What is new in this
proposition is
the necessity of a
Pastoral Plan for
initial proclamation,
teaching a living
encounter with
Jesus Christ.
• the grace of forgiveness of sins
above all in the Sacrament of
Reconciliation
because He entrusted to her
• His Body and
• His Blood
• and the strength of the Spirit that generates
charity towards all
because He entrusted to her
• the experience of communion that reflects
the very mystery of the Holy Trinity
PCP II on the personal encounter with Jesus Christ
“How to live as
Catholic Christians
today?”
It is to know, to love,
to follow Christ in the
Church which he
founded.
This is why
we need
to contemplate
the face---and
the heart of Christ.
We have to retell
His story
to ourselves,
that we may,
more credibly,
more authoritatively,
tell it to others.
This is our belief.
The Personal Encounter with Christ and Catechesis in the Philippines
There is a need to ascertain
that there has been the initial
proclamation and personal encounter
of Jesus among the catechized,
be they children, youth, or adults.
How can the catechized
“be in touch and in communion with
Jesus (the goal of catechesis) if they have
not first of all encountered him?
The Personal Encounter with Christ and Catechesis in the Philippines
The Sacrament of Baptism gives the
baptized the grace to encounter
Jesus Christ for the first time.
This encounter of Christ by the baptized
should be brought to their awareness,
deepened and confirmed through the various
means the Church offers, starting with prayer
at home and liturgy in the Christian
community, and in particular, catechesis.
From systematic instruction to deepening of faith
the catechized are helped to personally encounter
Jesus the Evangelizer and commit themselves to
think like him, to judge like him and to live as he
lived as they integrate knowledge of faith with their
daily life through fostering Gospel values and
developing faith convictions.
But does this take place when the catechists
conduct catechesis in the schools and in the
parishes?
The Personal Encounter with Christ and Catechesis in the Philippines
it is necessary that in
today's catechesis the
affective aspect of faith
formation is given due
importance in
catechesis in NE.
The catechists have to
be trained in making the
catechetical experience
less heady and cerebral
but more value-laden
and touching the heart.
“There are many who
are sacramentalized
but have not met
Jesus.”
Cardinal Donald Wuerl:
… there are many who have been catechized and have Jesus in their heads but not in the heart.
However, when we look at the
ministry of catechesis in the
Church in the Philippines, we
realize that almost 90% of the
effort done for catechesis is for
children and the locus is the
school, both public and the
Catholic educational institutions.
Very little is done in the parishes,
even in the families. No wonder
that our catechesis has been and
is still very cerebral. It has
always been dominated by the
scholastic and academic
paradigm and less by the
pastoral and evangelizing model.
How can we expect
that the graduates
of the Catholic
schools be young
men and women
with strong faith
convictions, who
have been truly
catechized and
evangelized?
How about adult
catechesis, the crown of
all catechesis?
Do the different forms of
adult catechesis (if any)
that are carried out in the
parishes highlight the
personal encounter with
Christ as a necessary first
element before
proceeding to any
catechetical experience
for the adults?
2nd Foundation: Conversion/Holiness - End or Goal of all Evangelization
The personal encounter with Christ
leads the evangelized to a conversion
experience and to answer the call to
holiness. This is both the proof of an
authentic Christ encounter as well as
the goal of all evangelization.
Proposition 22
The New Evangelization requires personal and communal conversion, new methods of evangelization and renewal of the pastoral structures, to be able to move from a pastoral strategy of maintenance to a pastoral position that is truly missionary.
The New Evangelization guides us to an authentic pastoral conversion which moves us to attitudes and initiatives which leads to evaluations and changes in the dynamics of pastoral structures which no longer respond to the evangelical demands of the current time.
Proposition 22
PCP II on Conversion “At the beginning of all renewed
evangelization is conversion.
Unless a person turns away from sin and
turns to God, undergoes a change of mind
and heart, and decides to follow Christ,
no evangelization will bear fruit.”
PCP II on Conversion
“Conversion then requires
the renewal of people’s
relationships and
their social structures.
By reason of our
pilgrimage to the Kingdom
of God, we need to change
our own hearts and the
social, economic, political
and cultural systems that
have promoted massive
poverty and inequity.”
Judge like Jesus
Our Personal Encounter with Christ leads us
to continuing conversion that is manifested
in our permanent commitment to
3rd Foundation: The Holy Spirit - Primary Agent of Evangelization
Ang Espiritu Santo: ang pangunahing tagapagpaganap ng pagpapahayag ng Mabuting Balita
Proposition 36:
The principal agent of
evangelization is the Holy
Spirit, who opens hearts
and converts them to God.
The experience of
encountering the Lord
Jesus, made possible by
the Spirit, which introduces
one into the Trinitarian life,
welcomed in a spirit of
adoration, supplication and
of praise, must be
fundamental to every aspect
of the New Evangelization…
“The first word,
the true initiative,
the true activity comes
from God and
only by inserting
ourselves in to the divine
initiative,
only by begging this
divine initiative,
will we too be able
to become
— with him and in him —
evangelizers.”
The Synod Fathers
are optimistic about the young, while at the same
time concerned that they are exposed to
various forms of aggressions
The Synod Fathers encourage communities
• to listen to, dialogue with and
respond boldly and without reservation to the difficult condition
of the youth
• to harness, not to suppress, the power of
their enthusiasm
The Synod Fathers encourage communities
• to struggle for them
against the fallacies and selfish ventures of worldly
powers which, to their own advantage, dissipate
the energies and waste the passion of the young,
taking from them every grateful memory of the
past and every profound vision of the future.”
PCP II on the Filipino youth •are among the most active in raising the
social consciousness not only of their peers but also of their elders
•are in the vanguard of many caused-oriented organizations
•are active in the social apostolate of the Church.
The Synod Fathers conclude: • the world of the young is a demanding but
also particularly promising field of the New Evangelization
• “Young people’s active role in evangelizing first and foremost their world is to be recognized.” Briefly, the Synod recognizes that in the
New Evangelization the young can be and
are evangelizers among their peers
PCP II decreed:
• that “every diocese should form, organize and mobilize the young in such a way that they get creatively involved in the life of the diocese/ parish as evangelizers of their fellow youth.
• A systematic and comprehensive program must be designed for this purpose
PCP II “In rhapsodizing rhetoric we extol them as the hope and future of the land. Yet precious little is being done to ensure that when that future will be theirs, they will be prepared and ready for it, able to hand it on in turn to their children with hopes of a still better life.”
“In the New Evangelization, the youth are not only the future but also the present (and gift) in the Church.
the youth are a gift of God who has an
extraordinarily loving vision for the
young: one that is truly incarnate,
preferential and unconditional.
According to
According to
“in contrast with some societies which see the
young people as in a period of preparation for
a future role but as lacking any significant
present role, the Church instead views the young
less futuristically and more positively.”
According to
The Church is in “a profound solidarity
and identification with the young,
calling upon them and integrating them truly
as children of God entrusted
to her.”
Proposition 51: “the stage of searching for truth and meaning in life that Jesus who is the Truth and their Friend can provide.”
The young are at a moment in life that they long for friends and they want to connect. All their connections will end nowhere when they are not connected with Christ, even if only as a Friend.
Proposition 51: “Through exemplary Christian adults, the saints, especially the young saints, and through committed youth ministers the Church is visible and credible to the youth.”
Proposition 51: “Wherever they are, at home, in school, or in the Christian community, it is necessary that evangelizers: - meet the young and spend time with them - propose to them and accompany them in following Jesus - guide them to discover their vocation in life and in the Church.
YOUTH MINISTRY IN CAPSULE - Friendly Presence - Christ Proposal and accompaniment - Vocational discernment and discovery: the crown of youth ministry
Proposition 51: “the great influence of media on “the
physical, emotional, mental and spiritual well-being of the youth”
Proposition 51: through catechesis and
youth ministry the young who are “digital natives”
are enabled and equipped:
• to discern between good and evil, • to choose Gospel values over worldly values, and • to form firm faith convictions.
Proposition 51: “The World Youth Day celebrations and YOUCAT are special instruments of the New Evangelization.
New Evangelization with the Young: Synthesis
• the youth in the New Evangelization demand from us youth ministers a new missionary spirit. We need to connect with them in their home and in social media as the new mission territories for us.
New Evangelization with the Young: Synthesis
• And as missionaries of the young in the New Evangelization, we should strive to learn to apply the catechumenal process.
The CATECUMENAL PROCESS:the model of doing catechesis in the New Evangelization
During the Post baptismal catechesis we can experience the catechemunate that begins with the personal relationship with Jesus through the Gospels, the Our Father and the 10 commandments.
New Evangelization with the Young: Synthesis
• In the New Evangelization, the “new youth” are today’s catechumens who need a postbaptismal catechumenate such that they grow as Christ’s disciples not only because of tradition but above because of their personal decision.
Need to understand and practice catechumenal model of catechesis
Post baptismal catechesis, without slavishly imitating the structure of the baptismal catechumenate, and recognizing in those to be catechized the reality of their Baptism, does well, however to draw inspiration from “this preparatory school for the Christian life,” and to allow itself to be enriched by those principal elements which characterize the catechumenate.
Pope Benedict in his conversation with Peter Seewald
“… we are heading increasingly toward a form of Christianity based on personal decision. And it will decide in turn to the extent to which the general Christian character remains at work. I would say that the task today, is … to consolidate, enliven, and enlarge this Christianity of personal decision, so that more people can consciously live and profess their faith again.”
The Paper Bag The Task of NE – The Transmission of the Christian Faith Let it be packed and let us bring it to the Christian community the Lord sends us. The “sapin-sapin” known as NE has the task to transmit the Christian faith. May we have the energy to get into the path of NE and share the Christian faith with the people we encounter at home, in the neighborhood, in the Christian community, in the workplace, wherever we are. Like the apostles, may we preach the Word in season and out of season. May we be witnesses of the Gospel as Proposition 57 challenges every Catholic today.
“You will be my witnesses” (Acts 1:8). From the very
beginning the Church has understood her
responsibility to pass on the Good News. The task of
the New Evangelization, following in this apostolic
tradition, is the transmission of the faith. The Second
Vatican Council reminds us that this task is a complex
process which involves the faith and life of every
Christian. This faith cannot be transmitted in a life
which is not modeled after the Gospel or a life which
does not find its meaning, truth and future based on
the Gospel.For this reason, the New Evangelization
for the transmission of the Christian faith calls all
believers to renew their faith and their personal
encounter with Jesus in the Church, to deepen their
appreciation of the truth of the faith and joyfully to
share it.
In all these, with the Spirit leading us let us be directed both by the documents of Vatican II and by the Acts and Decrees of PCP II.